““You shall not take advantage of any widow or fatherless child.”
— Exodus 22:22 WEB
Explore Bible verses about orphans, highlighting God's heart for the fatherless. Discover practical ways to care for orphans and understand pure religion.
Verses sourced from the World English Bible (public domain). Selection follows our editorial policy. Last reviewed 2026-04-23. See all sources.
Scripture emphasizes God's compassion for orphans, urging believers to protect and advocate for the fatherless. In Psalm 82:3, God commands justice for the weak and fatherless, reflecting His concern for their well-being. Caring for orphans is considered a key aspect of pure religion, demonstrating love and mercy in action.
““Defend the weak, the poor, and the fatherless. Maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.”
Orphans hold a special place in the heart of God. The Bible consistently reveals His deep concern for those without parents, showing His desire for justice and care for the vulnerable. Psalm 82:3 commands, “Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed.” This verse highlights the importance God places on ensuring orphans receive justice and support. God’s instructions are clear: they are not to be overlooked or mistreated.
In Exodus 22:22, God warns against taking advantage of widows and orphans, emphasizing their protection. Deuteronomy 10:18 tells us that God “executes justice for the fatherless and widow.” He extends His love by providing essentials like food and clothing. This divine care encourages us to reflect on our actions towards orphans and consider how we can extend God’s love and justice in our communities. These verses serve as a reminder of our responsibility to protect and uplift those who are fatherless.
““You shall not take advantage of any widow or fatherless child.”
— Exodus 22:22 WEB
“keeping loving kindness for thousands, forgiving iniquity and disobedience and sin; and who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, and on the children’s children, on the third and on the fourth generation.””
— Exodus 34:7 WEB
“‘Yahweh is slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness, forgiving iniquity and disobedience; and he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and on the fourth generation.’”
— Numbers 14:18 WEB
“He does execute justice for the fatherless and widow, and loves the foreigner, in giving him food and clothing.”
“If a poor man, one of your brothers, is with you within any of your gates in your land which Yahweh your God gives you, you shall not harden your heart, nor shut your hand from your poor brother;”
“For the poor will never cease out of the land. Therefore I command you to surely open your hand to your brother, to your needy, and to your poor, in your land.”
“‘Cursed is he who withholds justice from the foreigner, fatherless, and widow.’ All the people shall say, ‘Amen.’”
“Rejoice, you nations, with his people, for he will avenge the blood of his servants. He will take vengeance on his adversaries, and will make atonement for his land and for his people.For this verse, LXX reads: Rejoice, you heavens, with him, and let all the angels of God worship him; rejoice you Gentiles, with his people, and let all the sons of God strengthen themselves in him; for he will avenge the blood of his sons, and he will render vengeance, and recompense justice to his enemies, and will reward them that hate him; and the Lord shall purge the land of his people.”
“also the firstborn of our sons, and of our livestock, as it is written in the law, and the firstborn of our herds and of our flocks, to bring to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God;”
— Nehemiah 10:36 WEB
“You have sent widows away empty, and the arms of the fatherless have been broken.”
— Job 22:9 WEB
“There are those who pluck the fatherless from the breast, and take a pledge of the poor,”
— Job 24:9 WEB
“Because I delivered the poor who cried, and the fatherless also, who had no one to help him,”
— Job 29:12 WEB
“But you do see trouble and grief. You consider it to take it into your hand. You help the victim and the fatherless.”
— Psalms 10:14 WEB
“to judge the fatherless and the oppressed, that man who is of the earth may terrify no more.”
— Psalms 10:18 WEB
“Save your people, and bless your inheritance. Be their shepherd also, and bear them up forever.”
— Psalms 28:9 WEB
“All my bones shall say, “Yahweh, who is like you, who delivers the poor from him who is too strong for him; yes, the poor and the needy from him who robs him?””
— Psalms 35:10 WEB
“A father of the fatherless, and a defender of the widows, is God in his holy habitation.”
— Psalms 68:5 WEB
“He will have pity on the poor and needy. He will save the souls of the needy.”
— Psalms 72:13 WEB
““Defend the weak, the poor, and the fatherless. Maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.”
— Psalms 82:3 WEB
“Rescue the weak and needy. Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.””
— Psalms 82:4 WEB
“Like a father has compassion on his children, so Yahweh has compassion on those who fear him.”
— Psalms 103:13 WEB
“Let there be no one to extend kindness to him, neither let there be anyone to have pity on his fatherless children.”
— Psalms 109:12 WEB
“Yahweh preserves the foreigners. He upholds the fatherless and widow, but the way of the wicked he turns upside down.”
— Psalms 146:9 WEB
“He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for his Maker, but he who is kind to the needy honors him.”
— Proverbs 14:31 WEB
“He who has pity on the poor lends to Yahweh; he will reward him.”
— Proverbs 19:17 WEB
“Learn to do well. Seek justice. Relieve the oppressed. Judge the fatherless. Plead for the widow.””
— Isaiah 1:17 WEB
“Your princes are rebellious, and companions of thieves. Everyone loves bribes, and follows after rewards. They don’t judge the fatherless, neither does the cause of the widow come to them.”
— Isaiah 1:23 WEB
“Therefore the Lord will not rejoice over their young men, neither will he have compassion on their fatherless and widows; for everyone is profane and an evildoer, and every mouth speaks folly. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.”
— Isaiah 9:17 WEB
“to deprive the needy from justice, and to rob the poor among my people of their rights, that widows may be their plunder, and that they may make the fatherless their prey!”
— Isaiah 10:2 WEB
“For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and streams on the dry ground. I will pour my Spirit on your descendants,or, seed and my blessing on your offspring:”
— Isaiah 44:3 WEB
“Isn’t it to distribute your bread to the hungry, and that you bring the poor who are cast out to your house? When you see the naked, that you cover him; and that you not hide yourself from your own flesh?”
— Isaiah 58:7 WEB
“Yahweh says: “Execute justice and righteousness, and deliver him who is robbed out of the hand of the oppressor. Do no wrong. Do no violence to the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow. Don’t shed innocent blood in this place.”
— Jeremiah 22:3 WEB
“who show loving kindness to thousands, and repay the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after them; the great, the mighty God, Yahweh of Armies is his name;”
— Jeremiah 32:18 WEB
“Leave your fatherless children. I will preserve them alive. Let your widows trust in me.””
— Jeremiah 49:11 WEB
“We are orphans and fatherless. Our mothers are as widows.”
““I will seek that which was lost, and will bring back that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick; but I will destroy the fat and the strong. I will feed them in justice.”’”
— Ezekiel 34:16 WEB
“Don’t oppress the widow, nor the fatherless, the foreigner, nor the poor; and let none of you devise evil against his brother in your heart.’”
— Zechariah 7:10 WEB
“I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against the perjurers, and against those who oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and who deprive the foreigner of justice, and don’t fear me,” says Yahweh of Armies.”
— Malachi 3:5 WEB
““Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.Isaiah 57:15; 66:2”
— Matthew 5:3 WEB
“that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.”
— Matthew 5:45 WEB
“For God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 5:16 and, ‘He who speaks evil of father or mother, let him be put to death.’Exodus 21:17; Leviticus 20:9”
— Matthew 15:4 WEB
“‘Honor your father and your mother.’Exodus 20:12-16; Deuteronomy 5:16-20 And, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”Leviticus 19:18”
— Matthew 19:19 WEB
“For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother;’Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 5:16 and, ‘He who speaks evil of father or mother, let him be put to death.’Exodus 21:17; Leviticus 20:9”
— Mark 7:10 WEB
“You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not steal,’ ‘Do not give false testimony,’ ‘Do not defraud,’ ‘Honor your father and mother.’”Exodus 20:12-16; Deuteronomy 5:16-20”
— Mark 10:19 WEB
“You know the commandments: ‘Don’t commit adultery,’ ‘Don’t murder,’ ‘Don’t steal,’ ‘Don’t give false testimony,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother.’”Exodus 20:12-16; Deuteronomy 5:16-20”
— Luke 18:20 WEB
“I will not leave you orphans. I will come to you.”
— John 14:18 WEB
“You are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘In your offspringor, seed will all the families of the earth be blessed.’Genesis 22:18; 26:4”
— Acts 3:25 WEB
“I will be to you a Father. You will be to me sons and daughters,’ says the Lord Almighty.”2 Samuel 7:14; 7:8”
“Pure religion and undefiled before our God and Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”
— James 1:27 WEB
“My little children, I write these things to you so that you may not sin. If anyone sins, we have a CounselorGreek παρακλητον: Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, and Comforter. with the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous.”
— 1 John 2:1 WEB
Reflect
Consider how you can be God's hands and feet to orphans. His love for them is evident in scripture. He sees them and cares deeply. Reflect on how you can embody His compassion in tangible ways.
Pray
Heavenly Father, open our hearts to the needs of orphans around us. Guide us in showing love and compassion, just as You do. Help us to be instruments of Your justice and care.
Apply
This week, find a local organization that supports orphans and volunteer your time or resources. Consider mentoring a child or providing needed supplies.
The Bible emphasizes God's care for orphans. Exodus 22:22 warns against mistreating them, while Psalm 82:3 calls us to defend their cause. Deuteronomy 10:18 shows God's love in providing justice and necessary provisions. Scripture repeatedly highlights the importance of caring for the fatherless, urging us to uphold justice and compassion in their lives.
Caring for orphans can take many forms. James 1:27 describes pure religion as caring for orphans and widows in distress. Practical steps include volunteering at local shelters, donating resources, or even considering fostering or adoption. Prayerfully seek God's guidance on how you can extend His love, ensuring orphans receive the support and care they need.
Pure religion, according to James 1:27, involves caring for orphans and widows and keeping oneself unspotted from the world. This means living out our faith through tangible acts of love and compassion. Pure religion goes beyond rituals; it is demonstrated by actively supporting those in need and maintaining a life of integrity and purity before God.
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